David Avanesyan did not spoil the career of an American

David Avanesyan competed in one of the most notable fights of the year. The 34-year-old Russian boxer, who had to fight for the World Boxing Organization (WBO) champion title in the 66.7 kg category with American superstar Terence Crawford, started the fight very well with an invulnerable opponent, but still lost by knockout in the sixth round.

David Avanesyan, although he lost the fight that took place in the American city of Omaha, can, apparently, write it down in the list of the brightest and most honorable events that happened in his career. In itself, participation in it was already an achievement for the Russian. The fact is that the 35-year-old Terence Crawford, who is close to the top in all independent classifications of the best fighters, regardless of the weight category, and in some even on the top line, is extremely popular in the United States and a clash with them for any boxer is already kind of quality mark. Moreover, Crawford chooses his opponents rather meticulously. Moreover, the “purity” of his track record of 38 victories in 38 matches is not, as in many other cases, a consequence of the fact that the choice is made in favor of weaklings. On the contrary, Crawford managed to teach that he cares about his reputation and meets only with dangerous opponents with undoubted merit. In this sense, David Avanesyan, who by the middle of his 40s experienced something of a new heyday, winning six fights in a row by knockout and winning the European title, earned a lot of points even before entering the ring.

At the same time, it cannot be said that the Russian boxer looked worse in the match than the celebrities Jeff Horn, Jose Benavidez, Amir Khan, Egidijus Kavaliauskas, Kell Brook, Sean Porter, defeated by Terence Crawford before him. Moreover, his beginning turned out to be surprisingly difficult for the American. In the first round, Avanesyan was noticeably more active, the sweeping blow of the Russian right, presumably, turned out to be extremely unpleasant for the champion.

Significant moment.

One of the features of Terence Crawford is that he can box in different stances. So, he opened the fight in a right-handed stance, but quickly changed it. And there is no doubt that turning Crawford into a lefty meant that he realized that the old strategy brings nothing but discomfort.

Then he said that, despite the failures, he was absolutely calm, knowing that sooner or later he would achieve his goal. But in any case, Avanesyan, even after Crawford made stylistic adjustments and adapted to hit the right jab, looked pretty good. Sometimes he was able to shorten the distance and get the opponent. So all this did not look too much like a fight between an obvious favorite and an obvious outsider.

However, the Russian did not manage to keep the level for a long time. Terence Crawford really kicked in in the fifth round, probing the opponent’s defense with signature uppercuts. And shortly before the gong, one of them shook Avanesyan decently.

If he had endured the next round, he might have been able to impose a fight on the American. Endure, however, did not work. Crawford finished the fight with a “training” combination. Everyone knows perfectly well that it is dangerous to stagnate near him, but for some reason they fall into the same trap. So Avanesyan, who had slightly lost his freshness and, along with it, the speed of his footwork, did not jump back in time, missed another blow from below to the jaw of his left. He, apparently, would have survived him, but the uppercut was immediately followed by a shot with his right hand to the head. The Russian boxer fell flat on the floor, and it was a classic knockout.

After him, David Avanesyan will have to recover, not without reason hoping that he will still have “big” fights, and Terence Crawford will have to agree on a very grand fight.

Initially, it was assumed that at the end of this year, Crawford will perform in an even more catchy match in terms of the billboard. It was believed that his representatives had practically agreed on the terms of the fight with another American superstar, Errol Spence. Spence, who also has no misfires in his track record, owns the other three welterweight titles – the International Boxing Federation (IBF), the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Association (WBA). However, the matter never came to the signing of the agreement. Spence’s side, while explaining the delays with him, constantly referred to the injuries that the boxer received recently. At the same time, Errol Spence, before the fight between Crawford and Avanesyan, stated that he was still interested in the battle for the status of the absolute champion.

Alexey Dospekhov